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22 SoccerWeekjune 04 – jUNE 10, 2009Top Ten » The season’s ten big storiesWith both the Premier League and PSL done and dusted, SoccerWeek looks back at some of the sub-texts within the 2008/09 storythe lighter sideMEDIAMIKEWITH MICHAEL HUNTThe evidence suggests...When some people get a thought in their head, it’s oftenvery difficult to persuade them of anything else.A thought is certainly in the collective head of The Sun,in particular the bonces of hacks Ian McGarry and NeilCustis.‘Cristiano Ronaldo is set to throw Manchester Unitedinto turmoil and demand a move out of Old Trafford,’said the duo.Their proof? Quotes that one might describe as ‘ambiguous’,at best. Quotes that go thusly: “I’ve played manygames under a lot of pressure. The future? We’ll see.”Really?And you got ‘demand’ from that?For a more definitive word on Ronaldo’s future, let’s seewhat the man himself has said about the matter:“Yes, I am staying,” when asked by Sky Sports News.And in The News Of The World he said: “ManchesterUnited is my home”.First timersShearer: Too little, too late1. The St James’ Park circusThe season was disastrous, even by Newcastle’sstandards. The campaign startedwith Kevin Keegan at the helm, only for‘the Messiah’ to quit in September, withJoe Kinnear roped in as his replacement.Kinnear did an admirable steadying jobbefore health problems took him out ofcommission. Enter Alan Shearer. Eightgames and five points later Newcastle exitedthe top-flight with a whimper.2. Harry Houdini saves SpursTouted as top-four hopefuls before theseason, eight games into the campaignTottenham were looking anything but.Juande Ramos was axed and then Portsmouthboss Harry Redknapp answeredSpurs’ SOS. Under ‘Arry’s tutelage Spurswould only lose nine more games all season.Victory on the last day of the seasonat Liverpool would have seen them clincha place in the Europa League to crownwhat on the whole was still a remarkableturnaround.3. City bust credit crunchThe arrival of the Abu Dhabi UnitedGroup at Manchester City marked thestart of an exciting new era. Suddenly,City were the richest club in the world.The deadline-day arrival of Robinho wasa statement of intent as the club flauntedits newfound wealth. However, results onthe pitch failed to match expectations andCity even slumped to 18th place at onestage. A recovery saw Mark Hughes’ sidefinish in a respectable 10th place.4. Stamford Bridge bluesIn Luiz Felipe Scolari, a World Cup winnerwith Brazil, Chelsea thought they hadidentified the ideal man to preside overtheir fortunes. The Blues flattered to deceive,with new recruit Deco grabbing theearly headlines for some breathtakinggoals before the wheels started to fall off.Reports of player unrest born of unhappinesswith Scolari’s training methods andtactics, coupled with inept performancessaw the axe fall on the Brazilian. GuusHiddink stepped into the breach, galvanizedthe players and led the Blues to thesemi-finals of the Champions League andFA Cup final triumph.Giggs: Still going strongRobinho: A sign of things to come5. Sundowns disappoint - againOwner Patrice Motsepe funded the recruitmentof 18 new players, among themSibusiso Zuma. The striker was reportedlyon wages of R200 000 a month forwhich he repaid his employers with 10appearances and one goal. The poor returnon Motsepe’s investment was onlymatched by Henri Michel, the Frenchmanwho commanded a reported R720 000-amonthsalary. Michel was axed after supportersmade it violently clear they wantedhim out five months after his arrival.Ted Dumitru took over and could onlylead Sundowns to a ninth-place finish duringa trophyless campaign.6. United re-write historybooksManchester United came agonisinglyclose to landing an unprecedented quintuple.League, League Cup and Club WorldCup titles were secured, while they onlyfell in the semi-finals of the FA Cup andthe final of the Champions League. Muchof United’s success was built on a recordbreakingdefence. United became the firstclub to go 11 consecutive games withoutconceding a goal in the Premier League,before going on to break the English topflightrecord.7. Rafa v Sir AlexThe media lapped up the slinging matchbetween Rafael Benitez and Sir Alex Ferguson.First Rafa launched his calculated‘It’s a fact’ attack, alleging that matchofficials favoured United. Fergie in turnaccused Benitez of being ‘rude and disrespectful’for his hand gesture duringLiverpool’s victory over Blackburn. Rafathen refused to congratulate his rival followingUnited’s title triumph.8. Twists and turns in PSLraceHalfway through the season Ajax CapeTown looked on course to claim the titleonly for SuperSport to move into pole position.Resurgent Orlando Pirates thentook the race down to the wire, with Matsatsantsafinally prevailing on goal differencefor their second successive title.9. Giggs scoops top gongRyan Giggs, the most decorated player inMotsepe: Ringmaster at the circusThe birth of a great rivalryPremier League history, was voted thePFA Player of the Year. While the Welshmanput in some sterling performanceswhenever he played, last campaignhe was very much a bit-part player forthe Red Devils with his outings carefullyhand-picked. Still, the 35-year-old wasvoted the league’s top performer by hisfellow professionals.10. Villa shake things upAston Villa threatened to gatecrash thetraditional top-four party. By the middleof February, Martin O’Neill’s men satthird in the table. Surely nothing couldstop them now? Wrong. A nine-gamewin-less run followed and Arsenal overtookthem to give the top-four a familiarlook.Said Ryan Giggs: “We will look to get to a third consecutiveChampions final [next season] which no-one hasever done. That is the challenge we have got next year.”Yep, no-one has ever done it. Apart from Real Madrid(1956-59), Benfica (1961-63), Ajax (1971-73), Bayern Munich(1974-76), AC Milan (1993-95) and Juventus (1996-98).Use your head next timeJeff Powell wrote a piece in The Daily Mail about TerryVenables and his time in Spain, which closed with El Teloffering his thoughts on the Messi/Ronaldo debate:“If it does come down to Messi against Ronaldo, well,Messi is one of the best players in the world, but giveme Ronaldo. Messi is wonderful on the right but Ronaldois terrific on the right, the left and through the middleas well.“He also scores goals with his head, which Messicouldn’t do even if they put a top hat on him.”More on Ronaldo and Messi...The question of who is the best footballer in the worldwill run and run, and will have no definitive conclusion,but The Sun’s Neil Custis sure did nail his colours to themast just before the Champions League final.‘Cristiano Ronaldo v Lionel Messi - it’s no contest is it?’quotes Neil.‘There is a reason why Barcelona’s Argie star Messifinished runner-up to United ace Ronaldo in both theWorld and European Player of the Year awards - he isnot as good a player.’Like El Tel, we wonder if Mr Custis is feeling a little sillynow?Hey big spenderIntro from The Sun: ‘The Arab tycoon taking over Portsmouthhas vowed: We will spend more than ManchesterCity!’Actual quotes attributed to Pompey’s new owner, SulaimanAl Fahim: “I’m excited about the club and I’vesigned the memorandum. I was involved in the City purchasebut this one is now mine.”Worst headline of the week‘Weng In Stu Over Theo’ - The Daily Star gets it everso wrong when reporting on Arsenal manager ArseneWenger’s concerns about Theo Walcott’s involvement inEngland’s senior and Under 21 teams.An exclusive exclusiveReported Shaun Custis, EXCLUSIVELY in The Sun:‘ALAN SHEARER has told Newcastle’s flops - see youon July 1 for training.’The following papers on Fleet Street secured exactly thesame ‘exclusive’.The Times: ‘Shearer called in his players to the club’sLongbenton training ground at 9.30am yesterday. Over45 minutes, they were provided with summer fitnessprogrammes and told that pre-season training will commenceon July 1.’The Daily Mirror: ‘Shearer has ordered his players toreport back for training earlier than usual, on July 1,and back room staff including Chris Hughton and ColinCalderwood are likely to move on.’The Independent: ‘The players were then given theirsummer training schedule and told to report back on 1July.’